The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for receiving information services such as teletext services transmitted through broadcast waves or INTERNETS.
In recent years, two-way services which use the telephone line as a communication medium have grown in use. For example, xe2x80x9cteleshoppingxe2x80x9d makes purchasing goods within a home and via a telephone line or personal computer telecommunications and exchanging information in the form of character data possible. In the future a xe2x80x9cvideo on demandxe2x80x9d service for individually providing selected programs of movies or TV programs to respective receivers in response to receiver""s demands is expected.
Further, it is possible to participate in a global scale network, e.g., INTERNET from the home. The INTERNET will perform an Information exchange using an electronic mail (E-mail) or a WWW (world wide web) system at a global scale. The WWW system transfers data written by the HTML (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol) using a HTTP (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol). The transferred data can be graphically displayed by a xe2x80x9cWWW browserxe2x80x9d such as, e.g., a xe2x80x9cMosaicxe2x80x9d. Teleshopping, information services or advertisements and the like are also achieved by way of using the WWW system.
Further, a teletext has been performed for providing information service by way of using TV broadcast waves. A two-way service to transmit data to a broadcasting station by teletext using broadcast wave and the telephone line is about to be performed. Further, an xe2x80x9cinter-textxe2x80x9d service having a higher interactive ability than the teletext is under consideration for its service.
FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram showing a two-way service using a server.
The first station A and the second station B exchanges data between each other via the telephone line C. The first station A receives a TV broadcast wave by an antenna 8 and derives information from the received TV broadcast wave.
The first station A includes an information processing terminal devise 1, an analog modern 2, and a video signal processing block 3. The second station B is comprised of a modern 4, a server 5 which is a type of the information processor an auxiliary memory 6, and a network interface 7.
The server 5 is a type of computer for performing a proper processing in response to instructions from the information processing block 1. The server 5 is connected to a wide area network, e.g., so called INTERNET via the network interface. The INTERNET is a global scale network and is connected to an unlimited number of computers. The server 5 is able to obtain information held in other computers via the INTERNET.
Now data communication between the first station A and the second station B will be explained.
The first station A has a conventional arrangement for performing communications using personal computers in general homes. The second station B shows the most basic conceptual arrangement of the so called INTERNET provider.
Generally, the first station A obtains an account of accessing the server 5 and a phone number of the second station B in order to communicate with the second station B.
FIG. 13 illustrates a case in which the first station A is already subscripting with the second station B. First, the first station A requests a call connection through a telephone line C to the second station B (see 191 in FIG. 13). Thus the connection is established between modem 2 and modem 4.
Station A then establishes a connection between the information processing block I and the server 5 through software. Such a connection in software is made by using a data link layer of PPP (see 192 in FIG. 13), and a transport layer and network layer of TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/INTERNET Protocol) (see 193, 194 in FIG. 13). Here the PPP Is described In xe2x80x9cThe point-to-point Protocol (PPP), W. Simpson et al. Network Working Group, RFC 1661.
If the connection between the first station A and the second station B is established, the first station A can obtain information available through, for example, the WWW system. The protocol for realizing the WWW system is given by the http (see 195 in FIG. 13) representing a session layer of an OSI reference model, a presentation layer and an application layer. The HTTP is described in xe2x80x9cHypertext Transfer Protocol CHTTP/1.O, T. Berner-Lee et al, HTTP Working Group, INTERNET-DRAFT, Sep. 4, 1995xe2x80x9d.
Now another information service using the ground wave broadcasting will be explained. In the information service using the ground wave TV broadcasting, data is carried on a part of the vertical sync signal of the video signal.
FIG. 14 is a magnified view of the vertical sync signal of the video signal. Line numbers and their waveforms are shown in detail in FIG. 14. The lines xe2x80x9c#10xe2x80x9d through xe2x80x9c#20xe2x80x9d are vertical blanking periods and are hidden outside the TV screen. Lines xe2x80x9c#17xe2x80x9d through xe2x80x9c#20xe2x80x9d are used for operations in the broadcasting station. Lines xe2x80x9c#14xe2x80x9d through xe2x80x9c#16xe2x80x9d are assigned for transmissions of character data or graphical data referred to as teletext. Further lines xe2x80x9c#10xe2x80x9d through xe2x80x9c#13xe2x80x9d are assigned for a future use of services at a higher interactive ability than the current teletext.
Next, a user operation that can be performed on the information processing block I will be explained. FIG. 15 is a diagram showing a conventional arrangement of the information processing block 1 and the video signal processing block 3. As shown in FIG. 15, the information processing block 1 has an information processor 11, a display 12, an auxiliary memory 13 and an input device 14. The display 12, the auxiliary memory 13 and the input device 14 are connected to the information processor 11. And, the modern 2 is also connected to the information processor 11.
The information processor 11 performs basic control by executing an OS (operating system) stored in the auxiliary memory 13. The user accesses a xe2x80x9cWWW Browserxe2x80x9d, such as for example a xe2x80x9cMosaicxe2x80x9d developed by the University of Illinois in U.S., on the input device 14. The Information processor 11 reads out the xe2x80x9cBrowserxe2x80x9d application stored in the auxiliary memory 13 and displays it on the display 12. Next, the user inputs a URL (Uniform Resource Locator) that represents an address for identifying information available through the INTERNET. Upon inputting the URL, the user can obtain desired information over the INTERNET. The information processor 11 requests the URL address information assigned to the server 5 to be read out. Then, the server 5 retrieves the assigned URL address Information from the network and returns it to the information processor 11.
The information returned from the server 5 is a hyper link format, that is HTML (as exemplarily discussed in xe2x80x9cHyper Text Markup Language CHTML/2.Oxe2x80x9d, T. Berners-Lee, or HTML Working Group INTERNET-DRAFT, Aug. 8, 1995) format. The information in HTML format is arranged by the Mosaic operating on the information terminal unit 11 and displayed on the display 12 as graphical data.
On the other hand, the video signal processing block 3 has a sync signal separator 31, a waveform equalizer 32 and a data read-out error corrector 33.
The video signal obtained from an antenna 8 is supplied to both the sync signal separator 31 and the waveform equalizer 32. The sync signal separator 31 performs the sync separation from the video signal and generates a timing signal to decide the line numbers. The waveform equalizer 32 eliminates the ghost from the video signal, and then extracts the data carried on the vertical sync period, as shown in FIG. 14, under the timing control of the timing signal generated in the sync signal separator 31. The data read-out error corrector 33 corrects the errors of the data extracted in the waveform equalizer 32 then applies the data to the information processor 11. When the user is selecting the teletext, the information processor 11 generates a picture corresponding to the data supplied from the data read-out error corrector 33 and displays it on the display 12, as shown In FIG. 16.
According to this arrangement, the user can obtain a vast amount of information via the INTERNET and the teletext. For Instance the teletext service provides a variety of information such as political information (xe2x80x9cpoliticsxe2x80x9d) economic information (xe2x80x9ceconomicsxe2x80x9d), stock information (xe2x80x9cstocksxe2x80x9d), sports information (xe2x80x9csportsxe2x80x9d), traffic information (xe2x80x9ctrafficxe2x80x9d), weather information (xe2x80x9cweatherxe2x80x9d), and the like.
Furthermore, it is strongly desired and seemingly convenient to store the captured information in the storage medium such as a memory card as well as display it on the display 12.
However, it is necessary to selectively store necessary information among a vast amount of available information in the memory card in order to use effectively a limited capacity of storage medium such as a memory card Therefore, if the user instructs an operation for selectively writing necessary information among a vast amount of information in the storage medium, the operation of such the instruction will become very complicated and troublesome.
Further, according to this configuration, it is relatively easy to transmit any given data, such as an E-mail data, stored in the storage medium, such as a memory card, via the INTERNET.
However, to transmit E-mail data via the INTERNET the user must carry out a complicated instructing operation. Therefore, it becomes difficult for users who are unfamiliar with the operation to easily deliver E-mail data.
As described above, the conventional information service receiving apparatus overly burdens the user by requiring that the instruction of selecting information be written in the storage medium among a vast amount of available information when the information provided from the information service provider were writable in the storage medium.
Further, the conventional information service receiving apparatus necessitates a complicated operation in order to transfer the data that is stored in the storage medium via the information service provider.
The present invention has been made in view of the above mentioned problems. Thus, a first object of the present invention is to provide an information service receiving apparatus, an information service providing apparatus and a storage medium suitable for use with the information service receiving apparatus. The information service receiving apparatus can perform writing operations of the information in the storage medium to perform efficiently the writing operations without burdening its users.
A second object of the present invention is to provide an information service receiving apparatus and a storage medium suitable for use with the information service receiving apparatus. The information receiving apparatus can automatically transmit data stored in the storage medium for realizing the information without burdening users of the information service receiving apparatus.
In order to achieve the first object, an information service receiving apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention includes a managing information reader such as a card managing information reader for reading out managing information presto red in a storage medium. The storage medium can be a removable storage medium such as a memory card, a principal information capturer such as a video signal processor for capturing the principal information provided by a specific information service provider, a specific information extractor that has an information filter and a data extraction processor for extracting, e.g., specific Information associated with a key code contained in the managing information readout by the managing information reader among the principal information captured by the principal information capturer, and a data writer for writing the specific information extracted by the specific extractor in the inserted storage medium.
In order to achieve the second object, an information service receiving apparatus according to a second aspect of the present invention includes a managing information reader such as a card managing information reader for reading managing information presto red in a removable storage medium such as a memory card inserted in the information service receiving apparatus, a principal information reader such as a mail reader for reading out a specific principal information (e.g., E-mail data, hypertext and picture data) presto red in the storage medium when the managing information readout by the managing information reader contains information for instructing an information transmission to other terminals via a specific information service provider, and a principal information transmitter such as a mail transmission processor for transmitting the principal information read out by the principal information reader to the principal information service provider.
In order to achieve the first object, an information service receiving apparatus according to a third aspect of the present invention includes a managing information reader such as a card managing information reader for reading out managing information presto red in a removable storage medium, such as a memory card inserted in the information service receiving apparatus, a key code notifier such as a selective transmission requester for notifying a key code contained in the managing information readout by the managing information reader to the specific information service provider, a principal information capturer that has a video signal processor and an information filter for capturing principal information such as a teletext program data provided by the information service provider in response to a notification of key codes from a key code notifier, and a data writer for writing the principal information captured by the principal information capturer in the storage medium.
In order to achieve the first object, the information service receiving apparatus according to a fourth aspect of the present invention includes a clock device for presenting clock information, and the prohibition processor such as the data receiving prohibitor for prohibiting the writing of the specific information in the storage medium and the transmission of the principal information stored in the storage medium when the clock information presented by the clock device had expired the term of validity presented in the managing information read out by the managing information reader.
In order to achieve the first object, a fifth aspect of the present invention has an Information service providing apparatus that provides a lot of the principal information (e.g., teletext program data) available to the providing apparatus itself to the specific information service receiving apparatus as necessary, comprising specific information extractor such as a data extraction requester for extracting the specific information having a specific relationship with the notified key code among the lots of available principal information in response to a specific key code notified from the information service receiving apparatus, and the specific information transmitter which is comprised of, e.g., a requested data transmission controller, a teletext signal producer and a multiplexer for transmitting only the specific information extracted by the specific information extractor to the information service receiving apparatus originating the key code.
In order to achieve the first and the second objects, the storage medium according to a sixth aspect of the present invention has a memory space for storing the specific managing information indicating types of information services admitted in the information service receiving apparatus in a rewrite-protected manner, as long as there is at least no specific prohibition release instruction and for reading and writing any given principal information by the information service receiving apparatus.
According to the first aspect of the present invention, only information associated with a key code contained in the managing information presto red in the storage medium among principal information provided by a specific information service provider is written in the inserted storage medium. It is thus possible to store desired information into the storage medium if the storage medium that has a key code associated with the desired information is inserted in the information service receiving apparatus of the present invention.
According to the second aspect of the present invention, when the managing information stored in the loaded storage medium includes other information instructing data transmissions to other terminals via a specific information service provider, the data stored in the storage medium is read out therefrom and then automatically transmitted to the specific information service provider. Accordingly If an E-mail data is stored in the inserted storage medium together with information for instructing a transmission of information to other terminals via the specific information service provider, then it is possible to transmit the Email data.
According to the third aspect of the present invention, only the information provided by the information service provider when the key code contained in the managing information presto red in the storage medium was notified to the specific information service provider is written in the inserted storage medium. Accordingly, when the information service receiving apparatus is combined with the information service providing system according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, and a storage medium having a preset key code associated with desired information is inserted in the receiving apparatus, it is possible to store the desired information into the storage medium.
According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, when an effective term contained in the managing information presto red in the inserted storage medium, it is able to protect rewriting for the storage medium or transmission of the principal information stored in the storage medium. Accordingly, it is also able to limit available terms of information services provided by using every storage medium.
According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, when a specific key code is notified from the information service receiving apparatus, information specifically related to the notified key code is extracted from a vast amount of available principal information and only the specific information thus extracted is directed to the information service apparatus originating the key code. Accordingly, when the information service providing apparatus is combined with the information service receiving apparatus according to the third aspect of the present invention, the providing apparatus is able to provide information only for the information service receiving apparatus.
According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, although the principal information is freely read from or written to a given principal information memory space by the information service receiving apparatus, specific managing Information indicating types of information services admitted in the information service receiving apparatus is protected from rewritings as long as there is at least no specific prohibition release instruction. Accordingly, specified persons, e.g., the information service provider is able to manage the use of the information service by using the storage medium and prevent an illegal use of the information service.
Additional objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent to persons skilled in the art from a study of the following description and the accompanying drawings, which are hereby incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification.